\nBy Howard Stutz, Las Vegas Review-Journal
\n\tBookmark and Share
\n\tSince Secaucus, N.J., \u201cno longer smells like pig farms,\u201d Sheldon Adelson wouldn\u2019t mind building a casino in the nearby Meadowlands sports complex.<\/p>\n
\tThe Las Vegas Sands Corp. chairman said the location in Northern New Jersey \u2014 across the Hudson River from New York City \u2014 would be \u201ca very attractive place\u201d for a hotel-casino.<\/p>\n
\tAdelson\u2019s interest in New Jersey was part of his keynote discussion at the Global Gaming Expo last week, although the comments were overshadowed by his verbal beatdown against the legalization of Internet gaming.<\/p>\n
\tBut they weren\u2019t lost 3,000 miles away in New Jersey.<\/p>\n
\tState and local leaders are dealing with a plummeting gaming business in Atlantic City.<\/p>\n
\tFour Boardwalk casinos closed this year. A fifth, the Trump Taj Mahal, could shut down next month. Revel, which closed after Labor Day, is being bought by ownership of the Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas, and is expected to reopen. Meanwhile, Atlantic City gaming revenue has fallen more than 60 percent since 2006.<\/p>\n
\tThe idea of Adelson and Las Vegas Sands setting up shop in New Jersey might appeal to Gov. Chris Christie.<\/p>\n
\tLast month, during a two-and-a-half-hour gaming summit in Atlantic City, Christie said a casino located in northern New Jersey was an option still in discussion.<\/p>\n
\tChristie is potential 2016 GOP presidential candidate. Adelson spent $100 million to try to put a Republican in the White House in 2012 and is gearing up for the next race. So there is that possible connection.<\/p>\n
\tA spokesman for Christie didn\u2019t return an email request for comment.<\/p>\n
\tThe Meadowlands already houses a racetrack and MetLife Stadium, home to the National Football League\u2019s New York Jets and New York Giants. The stadium also hosted the 2014 Super Bowl.<\/p>\n
\tAdelson told the G2E audience he likes the idea of opening his company\u2019s business model \u2014 hotel, casino, convention and meeting space, retail, dining and other entertainment attractions \u2014 within a short drive of Manhattan.<\/p>\n
\tWhen he was in the U.S. Army, Adelson was stationed at Governor\u2019s Island in New York City.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cI could smell Secaucus,\u201d Adelson said of the area\u2019s pig farms that have long since disappeared. \u201cIt used to rain the odor of pig farms on the Meadowlands. We don\u2019t have that anymore. So it would be a very attractive place.\u201d<\/p>\n
\tSecaucus Mayor Michael Gonnelli told John Brennan of The Record in Bergen County that the city should be proud of its roots. Secaucus was the military\u2019s largest supplier of pork during World War II.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cI wish (Adelson) would come back and take a look at the town now,\u201d Gonnelli said.<\/p>\n
\tAdelson said the Meadowlands could have drawbacks, such as competition from New York.<\/p>\n
\tThe state is adding four casinos in three counties, the closest being 50 miles from Manhattan. New York City could be next on the list, but it will be seven years before the issue is revisited.<\/p>\n
\tNew York also has five Indian casinos and nine racetracks with slot machines.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cIt\u2019s a two-edged sword,\u201d Adelson said, adding that a Meadowlands casino \u201csucking up all the money\u201d could be the catalyst for a New York City resort.<\/p>\n
\tNew Jersey has a ban on casinos anywhere but Atlantic City. A repeal on that stipulation is supported by northern New Jersey politicians and the state\u2019s horse racing industry. Atlantic City and southern New Jersey politicians have long fought the idea.<\/p>\n
\tAdelson has kept Las Vegas Sands away from Atlantic City.<\/p>\n
\tAs a youngster, he worked for an uncle who ran a business at the Million Dollar Pier. Adelson would also visit Atlantic City when he was in the Army.<\/p>\n
\tDuring his G2E talk, Adelson said he predicted Atlantic City\u2019s demise. He thought the market would eventually lose business to other states. Las Vegas Sands operates the Sands Bethlehem at the former Bethlehem Steel Mill in Lehigh Valley, Pa., which is less than 100 miles west of New York City.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cIt was my conviction that someday the abutting states were going to legalize gaming and suck out all the business that Atlantic City was taking from adjacent states,\u201d Adelson said.<\/p>\n
\tAtlantic City gaming revenue peaked at $5.2 billion in 2006. In 2013, casino revenue fell to $2.86 billion. It\u2019s expected to decline more this year.<\/p>\n
\tTwo years ago, Las Vegas Sands wanted to build a hotel-casino in downtown Miami if Florida had approved gaming expansion. The company stayed away from Boston because Adelson wasn\u2019t going to be allowed to build a property in the downtown region.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cI didn\u2019t think I could scale down my integrated resort plan,\u201d Adelson said. \u201cWhat we build now are iconic buildings.\u201d<\/p>\n
\tLas Vegas Sands is in the center of the gaming expansion debate in Japan.<\/p>\n
\tAs far as the United States goes, Adelson said Texas, South Florida and possibly Tampa, Fla., would be attractive for his company.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cOur model has to put us in a major city,\u201d Adelson said.<\/p>\n
\tPreferably, one without a pig farm.<\/p>\n
No replies were posted for this topic.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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